The Other Clans
by 2x the awesomes
Summary: What if the four Clans we've heard about aren't the only ones? Follow the adventures of young three young apprentices from SkyClan (not the one from the books) as they face battles, their connection with their clan members and their warrior ancestors, LightClan. Yeah, I know I suck at summaries, please just read.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! This is my new story, it's just an idea I had recently and thought I'd see what you guys think of it. **

**So, before I start I probably need to explain some things. Instead of four clans there are five, SkyClan (not the same one from the books), GrassClan, MoonClan, SnowClan and CaveClan. Instead of Leaders, they have Cheifs, Medicine Cats are Healers, Warriors are Fighters, Apprentices are Learners, Queens are Mothers and Elders are Seniors. Instead of the Gathering, they have the Meeting, and instead of StarClan they have LightClan, so instead of, for example, Firestar, they would have Firelight. Does that make sense? I don't know, you'll work it out.**

**Oh, and instead of having 'paw for apprentices, they have 'root.**

**Also, just so you know I don't really go for quantity of chapters, I go for quality. I'm not saying that someone can't write a good chapter quickly, I'm just saying I take a bit longer if I want to write a good quality chapter, so if you're looking for a fast uploading story, this isn't the one, but it does just mean I take a little longer to perfect my chapters/make them longer.**

**I think that's all, with all that aside, enjoy!**

**Skyclan**

**Chief:** Mosslight – Mottled brown and black she-cat.

**Deputy:** Branchtail – Long-tailed brown and ginger tabby tom-cat

**Healer:** Oakfur – Dark brown tom with lighter stripes. **Learner:** Leafroot – Pretty tortoiseshell with only three legs.

**Fighters:**

Smalltail – Grey tabby she-cat with part of her tail missing. **Learner:** Mouseroot – Dark brown tom with green eyes.

Sparrowcloud – Small brown tabby tom.

Whiteear – Black tom with blotches of white.

Swallowfur – Beautiful she-cat with pale brown fur with darker stripes and a white underbelly and chest. **Learner:** Crowroot – Sleek, all-black tom with green eyes.

Squirreltail – Russet she-cat with long, soft fur.

Shadowspring – Dark grey tom.

Sandypetal – Light sandy coloured she-cat with ginger stripes. **Learner:** Brackenroot – Golden-brown tabby tom with long legs.

Jaggedscar – Brown tabby tom with a long scar down his back. **Learner:** Softroot – Pale grey she-cat with soft, fluffy fur.

Shellstorm – Pale sandy and grey she-cat.

**Mothers:**

Darkpool – Dark grey she-cat with amber eyes. **Kits:** Fernkit.

Brightclaw – White and brown she-cat. **Kits:** Flamekit and Shadekit.

Owlfrost – Tawny brown, black and grey she-cat with grey-green eyes. **Kits:** Fawnkit, Batkit and Icekit.

**Seniors:**

Mistleaf – Blue-grey she-cat.

Robinfeather – Red-brown tom.

Littlestep – Very small tan tabby tom.

**GrassClan**

**Cheif:** Dapplelight – Wiry white and grey she-cat.

**Deputy:** Ashspark – Light grey and black she-cat.

**Healer:** Thistleleaf – Brown and gold tabby tom.

**Fighters:**

Emberblaze – Almost black she-cat. **Learner:** Silverroot – Silver tabby she-cat.

Hayswirl – Golden tabby tom.

Deerflash – Fawn coloured she-cat with blue eyes. **Learner:** Rippleroot – Pale grey tom.

Nettlestripe – Brown and tan tabby tom. **Learner:** Amberroot – Golden tabby she-cat.

Eaglefang – Brown she-cat.

Rustfur – Red-brow tom with dark stripes.

Smokewind – Dark grey tom. **Learner:** Speckleroot – Spotted brown and black tom.

**Mothers:**

Stonespot – Light grey she-cat with darker spots. **Kits:** Rainkit and Bramblekit.

Shredpetal – Brown she-cat. **Kits:** Lightingkit and Branchkit.

Twistedfoot – Dark brown she-cat with a misshapen foot. **Kits:** Goldenkit.

**Seniors:**

Cherrynose – Once beautiful golden-brown tabby she-cat.

Duskwind – Grey and black tom cat.

**MoonClan**

**Leader:** Thornlight – Creamy coloured tom with light brown stripes.

**Deputy:** Hawkbriar – Long furred tortoiseshell tom. Learner: **Rowanroot** – Handsome gold and ginger tabby tom.

**Healer:** Crownose – Black and white tom.

**Fighters:**

Redtail – Beautiful ginger and black tortoiseshell she-cat with a white belly, chest and nose.

Flamefur – Ginger tom. **Learner:** Pebbleroot – Grey and white she-cat.

Raggedear – Grey tabby tom with torn ears. **Learner:** Starroot – Pale silver white she-cat.

Swiftclaw – Pale brown tabby she-cat.

Rabbitflight – Brown she-cat.** Leaner:** Appleroot – Tortoiseshell she-cat.

Coppersplash – White and copper tom with green eyes.

Tornfur – Brown tabby tom with patches of fur missing from old battle scars. **Learner:** Ebonyroot – Pure black she-cat with unusual blue eyes.

Nightsplash – Black and grey she-cat.

**Mothers:**

Rosesong – Creamy coloured she-cat with light blue eyes. **Kits:** Hawkkit, Featherkit and Opalkit.

Skyflash – Brown tabby she-cat with a white chest. **Kits:** Shadowkit.

**Seniors:**

Lostgaze – Dark brown she-cat with blind amber eyes.

Wolfshadow – Grey tom.

**SnowClan**

**Leader:** Palelight – Very pale grey she-cat.

**Deputy:** Snowhawk – White tom.

**Healer:** Icestrike – White and silver she-cat. **Learner:** Swanroot – Pale grey and white she-cat.

**Fighters:**

Rainshine – Light grey tom with darker stripes.

Harepelt – Light brown tabby she-cat. **Learner:** Rubbleroot – Light grey, medium grey and black tortoiseshell tom.

Rivertalon – Silvery blue long furred tabby tom.

Whitestrike – Pure white she-cat with one blue eye and one green eyes.** Learner:** Cederroot – Pale creamy ginger coloured tom.

Darkpatch – Siamese she-cat who ran away from a horseplace when she was a kit, and was found by Palelight.

Mistmoon – White she-cat with darker markings on her face, tail and legs. **Learner:** Amberroot – Dark ginger tom.

Frostwhisker – Silver tom.

**Mothers:**

Rapidfrost – White and grey tabby she-cat.** Kits:** Daisykit and Littlekit.

Streamjump – Grey she-cat. **Kits:** Coldkit.

Honeysplash – White she-cat with soft honey coloured patches. **Kits:** Dustkit, Greykit and Redkit.

**Seniors:**

Blizzardshade – White, grey and brown tortoiseshell she-cat.

**CaveClan**

**Leader:** Waterlight – Dark grey tom.

**Deputy:** Stonepelt – Spotted grey and black tom.

**Healer:** Pebblefall – Grey and brown tabby she-cat.

**Fighters:**

Ravenshadow – Very dark grey tom.

Losttalon – Black she-cat with one claw missing. **Learner:** Spottedroot – Brown and grey spotted she-cat.

Foxtail – Red-brown tom with a white tip to his tail. **Learner:** Pondroot – Grey she-cat.

Featherclaw – Mottled brown and grey she-cat.

Waspthorn – Ginger and black tabby tom.

Hawktalon – Grey tabby tom. **Learner:** Webroot – Beautiful white she-cat with dark markings around her eyes, ears and back.

Dovepelt – Soft grey she cat.

**Mothers:**

Jaywing – Grey she-cat. **Kits:** Darkkit, Cloverkit and Petalkit.

**No seniors.**

The Clans have always lived on the mountain. There was my Clan, SkyClan, who live in the forested area, and who are good climbers of the trees, and prefer hunting birds and squirrels and little animals that live above the ground. We're skinny, hardmuscled and usually have longer legs and tails. There's GrassClan, the cats of wide open spaces who like very little to no cover from the harsh mountainside winds. They're smaller than the cats of the other Clans, but in no means weaker.

MoonClan like hunting in the dense shadow of small trees and scrubland, and mostly do their hunting during the night, preferring to sleep during the day. They've got big eyes, perfect for seeing things in the dark hours of the night. SnowClan lives on the top of the hill, where snow always covers the ground. They're usually lighter colours to blend into the snow that they hunt in, with a few exceptions.

Finally, CaveClan live in the big cave in the side of the mountain. They're very lithe cats, with longer claws they use to keep balance on the thin paths jutting out from the cliff face their cave is eroded into.


	2. Chapter 2

**Helloooo everyone, I feel like it's been absolutely ages since I've been on FanFiction, damn it's been a long time since I've posted anything. I don't really have a reason, except it took me a while to write this chapter, and if you follow my other main story, Fionna IRL, I've had massive writers block. **

**Anyhoo, like I said, I know it's been forever since I got my first chapter for this story up, but like I said in the first chapter, this will not be a fast uploading story. I know some writers can get chapters up like, every week or something, and I really take my hat off to them, but between school, writing on this other website I'm part of, writing other fanfics and just general life l really just don't have time to write a good long chapter very often. So, you'll probably be lucky if I get a chapter up once a month, but it will probably take me longer than that.**

**But, whatever, I've talked for long enough, on with the story!**

Crowkit nosed his way out of the nursery, sniffing the cold air before hurrying across the camp to the prey pile. He picked out a small squirrel and trotted back over to the nursery. He dropped it outside the entrance and poked his head inside the den.

"Leafkit! Hey, Leafkit!" He saw his sister raise her tortoiseshell-and-white head, her eyes still heavy with sleep. "I got us a squirrel. Come on!" She brightened, and hopped out of the nursery.

"Great!" She crouched down and started tucking into the squirrel with Crowkit. When they finished, Crowkit swiped his tongue over his jaws and jumped onto four paws.

"I can't believe today is the day!" He said. "We're _finally _gonna be leaners!" Leafkit laughed fondly, and head butted him.

"I know, mouse-brain!" She sat back on her haunches, licked her front paw and drew it over her ear. "You're not the only one who's been looking forward to today." Crowkit licked her between her ears.

"I just wish you were becoming a fighter's learner." Leafkit had been born with one of her front legs completely missing. Though she was otherwise perfectly healthy, it meant she could never train to be a fighter.

"I don't!" She said. "Always running over the mountain, getting exhausted and torn up in battle! I'd much rather be able to have knowledge of berry's and herbs and a connection to LightClan." Crowkit shrugged.

"Well, if it works for you, I guess I'm happy for you," He touched his muzzle to hers. "I will miss you in training sessions though." Leafkit purred in amusement.

"I bet you'll get so many injuries from battles that you'll be in my den so much you'll be sick of me!" Crowkit hissed playfully, and batted her lightly with sheathed claws.

"I bet I'll give the other clan members more wounds then they'll give me. I'm gonna be the best fighter this clan has ever seen!"

The kits heard a rustle coming from the great tree, and turned to see their chief, Mosslight, emerge from her den, a large hole in the trunk of the great tree. She climbed down and walked over to the prey pile, and picked out a piece for herself.

"Wouldn't it be amazing to be Clan chief?" Crowkit murmured. Leafkit looked at him.

"You've got quite a long way to go, 'Crowlight'."

"Oh, no I didn't mean…" Leafkit's mouth fell open in mock shock and horror.

"Crowkit! You're not thinking of overthrowing Mosslight, are you?" Crowkit cuffed her gently over the ear.

"That's not what I meant."

The kits padded around the camp, unable to sit still with excitement. Finally, at half-way **(A/N sun-high)** Mosslight hopped up onto the branch that jutted out of the trunk of the Great Tree, and called out.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Great Tree for a Clan meeting." Leafkit whipped her head around to stare at Crowkit, her eyes filled with excitement and nerves.

"Finally!" He whispered, and they scampered over to where the cats were gathering under the Great Tree. They sat down next to their mother, Shellstorm, and she immediately began fussing over them.

"Crowkit, Leafkit, are you completely unable of grooming yourselves?" She hurriedly drew her tongue over both of them in a hurried attempt to smooth their fur out. Crowkit pulled away from her.

"My fur is fine!" Shellstorm purred softly at Crowkit.

"I just want my kits to look their best for their learner ceremony."

"As I'm sure you're aware," Mosslight began from where she sat on the Great Tree. "Crowkit and Leafkit have reached their sixth moon, and are ready to become learners." She nodded to the kits, signalling for them to come forward. Crowkit's fur bristled with nerves as he walked forward, all the cat's eyes fixed on him and Leafkit.

"Oakfur," Mosslight called out. The dark brown healer padded forward, his head raised with pride. "You are a great healer with your intelligence and your kindness and gentleness in mending wounds. You shall be teacher to Leafroot," Leafroot hopped over to Oakfur and touched noses with him. "Oakfur, you have a great knowledge of herbs and a strong connection to LightClan. I trust you will pass all you have learned onto Leafroot." Oakfur dipped his head respectfully and the two of them disappeared back into the crowd. Crowkit felt very alone standing there by himself.

"Swallowflight," The beautiful brown she-cat came forward and sat next to Crowkit. "You are ready for your first learner. You are an amazing hunter, and brave in battle. I know you will be a great teacher to Crowroot," Crowroot felt his heart pounding as he touched noses with Swallowflight. "Swallowflight, the whole Clan knows your courage and loyalty. Do your best to pass these qualities onto Crowroot." Swallowflight nodded and lead Crowroot back into the crowd.

"Leafroot! Crowroot! Leafroot! Crowroot!" The Clan chanted their names. Crowroot looked over at Leafroot and met her eyes and smiled. After the crowd dispersed Swallowflight turned to him.

"How about we go out into the forest and get to know the territory?"

"Already?" Crowroot was surprised. He had thought he'd have to do some boring learner chores first, like clearing out the senior's den or something.

"Why not?" Swallowflight ears twitched in amusement at his surprise. Crowroot hopped onto all four paws.

"Let's go!"

Crowroot trotted out of the camp entrance after Swallowflight, his head and tail held high. When he got outside the camp he drew in a deep breath, his mouth open slightly. The scents of the forest bathed his tongue, like the scent's the fighters and learners brought in on their pelts when they came home from hunting, patrols or training, but fresher and untainted.

"You coming?" He looked up in surprise. He hadn't noticed Swallowflight walking further into the forest while he had been tasting the air. He scampered after her, his fur bristling with embarrassment. Swallowflight let out a little _mrrow _of laughter.

They walked through the forest until they came to a steep hill. Crowroot panted heavily, working hard to keep up with his teacher. When they came to the top he saw it dropped away just as steeply on the other side. He could smell something else, a different scent. It smelled mustier than the scents he was used to, and slightly bitter.

"This is the border between us and MoonClan," Swallowflight said. "Can you smell their clan scent?" Crowroot nodded, trying to memorise the scent of MoonClan.

They walked along the border for a little bit, before Swallowflight veered off down the side of the hill. Crowroot hurried after her, but misjudged how steep the hill was and rolled head over tail down the hill. Swallowflight laughed lightly.

"You alright?" Crowroot flicked leaf off his ears and spat dirt and scraps of bark out of his mouth.

"Yep," he hopped up. "Where're we going next?"

"We're going up to the SnowClan border, and then back to camp. It's getting close to low-light and I don't want you getting exhausted." Swallowflight must have noticed his tail drooping because she said: "Don't worry. The forest isn't going anywhere; you'll always be able to come out here again. And besides, aren't you excited to see Leafroot again? You two seemed inseparable when you were in the nursery." Crowroot brightened.

"You're right."

They walked upwards, and Crowroot felt the ground getting steeper underpaw. The mountain ground was always sloped, but it was getting steeper and steeper as they reached the summit. After a little while, the trees began thinning and the air was getting colder. Crowroot noticed a white blanket of snow on the ground a little way up ahead, and again smelt a different clan. This time it smelt… well, he supposed the only way to explain it was cold. And fresh, almost a bit like grass. It made him shiver slightly. He saw his teacher sniffing the air.

"There's a SnowClan patrol heading this way." She said. Crowroot dug his claws into the earth.

"Will we get to meet them?" His teacher nodded.

"I see no reason not to." Crowroot's ears pricked up in excitement. His first time out of the camp and he would get to meet fighters from another clan! Soon, a group of cats came into view. A silver tom cat stepped forward.

"Swallowflight," He said. "What are you doing here?" His tone wasn't hostile, just guarded. Swallowflight dipped her head in greeting.

"Frostwhisker," She looked up again. "I was only showing my learner the boundaries. I smelt the patrol coming and he was eager to meet cats from another clan." Frostwhisker nodded, slightly suspiciously. A white she-cat with different coloured eyes head butted him in the shoulder.

"Lighten up, Frostwhisker! Don't you remember when you were a learner?" The cat turned to Swallowflight. "It's good to see you again, Swallowflight." Swallowflight nodded in agreement.

"It does feel like many moons, Whitestrike."

"Well, we've got to be getting on with the border patrol." Frostwhisker turned to leave.

"And I've got to get my learner back to camp," Swallowflight said. "Goodbye Whitestrike, Frostwhisker." Frostwhisker nodded curtly.

"Come on, Whitestrike." He started walking away.

"I hope to see you at the next Meeting." Swallowflight nodded before Whitestrike turned to follow her clanmate. Swallowflight turned and started heading back to camp and Crowroot hurried after her, not wanting to be left behind.

"I didn't know other clan's fighters were so… reserved." He said. Frostwhisker's attitude had confused him slightly. He knew the clans weren't close friends, but he hadn't expected a fighter to act so cold.

"He's not always like that," Swallowflight said, her eyes fixed on the forest ahead. "At Meetings where every clan is more relaxed he can be friendly, just not when he's on a border patrol."

"Oh." Crowroot nodded.

After a while the two of them got back to the clearing. Crowkit gladly walked in, his paws aching from walking around the forest for so long. The territory was so much bigger than he'd imagined **(A/N the territories in this are waaaaay bigger than the ones in the warrior books.)**

He looked around, trying to see if he could see Leafroot. He looked over at the healer's den, and saw her head poke out, her mouth filled with dark green leaves. She brightened when she saw him, but didn't come over to see him. Instead, she hurried over to the senior's den, flicking her ears to signal for him to follow her. Crowroot looked up at Swallowflight for permission. When his teacher nodded her approval, he ran across the clearing to his sister. He pushed his way into the senior den.

"…Oakfur said I had to," He heard his sister mewing. "I just need to rub a little onto your back leg and he says the stiffness will go away."

"Well, if Oakfur says to…" Crowroot heard the voice of Littlestep as he entered.

"Yes, he does. Now will you let me?" Littlestep sighed, and nodded.

"Why, hello Crowroot," Robinfeather greeted him. "How's life as a learner?" Crowroot dipped his head deeply in a respectful greeting.

"It's good so far. I saw the territory and met some SnowClan fighters." Littlestep hissed.

"You can't trust SnowClan. They've got hearts as cold as their territory."

Leafroot spat out the pulp of leaves she had been chewing and looked up at Crowroot.

"SnowClan fighters?" She said, her eyes wide with amazement. "What were they like?"

"Well, one of them was a silver tom, Frost something or other."

"Frostwhisker," Robinfeather corrected. "I knew his mother, Blizzardshade." Crowroot nodded.

"Frostwhisker, that was it. The other one was a white she-cat called Whitestrike. She seemed friendlier than Frostwhisker," Crowroot watched as Leafroot dipped her paw in the leaf pulp and rubbed it on the top of one of Littlestep's back legs. "What did you do, Leafroot?" He asked.

"Oakfur showed me the stores of the healer den, and taught me a few basic herbs and berries. I learnt mouse bile for ticks, but every cat knows that, juniper berries for stomach-ache and oak leaf for infection." Robinfeather purred.

"You'll make a fine healer someday." Leafroot's fur bristled slightly with embarrassment.

"There you go," She drew back from Littlestep. "You're all done."

The two learners left the senior's den, and Leafroot sat down to wash the remains of the leaf pulp off her paw. When she was finished she turned to Crowroot.

"I can't _believe _you go to meet SnowClan fighters!" She sighed wistfully. "I wish I got to do stuff like that."

"You get to meet the other clans' medicine cats!" Crowroot said. "And you and Oakfur get to go into any cat's territory and you won't get your fur ripped off. If anything, you'll get to meet more cats than me." Leafroot brightened again.

"I guess so."

Before long, it was time to go into the dens for the night. Crowroot headed towards the learner den. He pushed his way through the branches that were used to build the den. Inside it was warm, the floor covered with grass that the fighters and learners had torn up from the mountain side. He saw Softroot raise her head as he came in.

"Hey, Crowroot," the soft grey she-cat said. "There's a free patch of grass over there." She nodded to a spot of shredded grass near the back of the den. Crowroot dipped his head in thanks and lay down in the patch of grass that had no other cats' scent on it. He curled up, his tail tucked over his nose. He was almost asleep when some of the other learners came in.

Brackenroot and Mouseroot were two of the oldest learners in the clan, almost fighters, along with Softroot. Brackenroot was a good looking, strong cat and knew it. He was slightly arrogant and could be annoying at times, but was good fun most of the time.

Mouseroot followed Brackenroot around most of the time, looking up to him almost in the way a kit would look up to a great warrior.

Brackenroot noticed Crowroot for the first time.

"Hey, Crowroot!" He said. "Welcome to the learners den!"

"Thanks, Brackenroot." He replied. He rested his head back down, wanting nothing more than to just fall asleep. Fortunately, the other learners seemed to feel the same way. Brakenroot curled up beside Softroot, his sister, and Mouseroot lay down close to where Crowroot was. The three other learners, Hawkroot, Snakeroot and Falconroot, came in a few moments later, and curled up quietly in their own patches of grass.

Crowroot wriggled around, trying to get comfortable. The learner den seemed quiet and empty after the nursery, which had been unusually full, especially since Brightclaw had moved out of the fighters den when her belly started to get heavy with kits. He also missed Leafroot and his mother, Shellstorm. Eventually, though, he managed to drift off.

He was woken in the morning by Leafroot poking her head into his den. His eyes flickered open and he saw faint light filtering in through the branches. When he saw how bright the light was, he jumped up in surprise, not wanting to be late for his duties.

"Quiet down, squirrel-brain," He heard Brackenroot mumble. "It's still early." The learner rolled over and fell back asleep. Leafroot purred quietly in amusement, and Crowroot followed her out of the den, his pelt bristling with embarrassment.

"What is it?" He hissed, trying to keep his mew soft so he didn't wake every cat in the clan. It was still early new-light, and he didn't want to start his first day as a learner by waking up the fighters.

"I have something to tell you, is all." Crowroot stifled his yawn. Leafroot seemed really excited, and he didn't want to spoil her happiness.

"What?"

"Brightclaw had her kits last night!" Crowroot instantly felt more awake.

"Really?" He said. "How is she? How many kits did she have?" Leafroot purred happily.

"She's fine. She had two beautiful kits, a boy and a girl. She called the boy Flamekit and the girl Shadekit," She looked down for a moment. "I didn't get to do much, Oakfur did practically everything. I just brought him soaked moss and stood by watching." Crowroot head butted her.

"Don't get down. You've only just become a learner. It's not like Swallowflight would let me fight a MoonClan warrior single pawed yet." Leafroot brightened.

"You're right." The learners heard a rustle, and turned to see Squirreltail emerging from the fighters den. She stretched, and licked a few grass stems off her long, russet pelt. A few moments later her mate, Jaggedscar, followed her out. They brushed muzzles, then walked side by side to the prey pile.

"Aren't you sad you'll never get a mate?" Crowroot asked curiously. It was one of the sacred rules that healers must never fall in love or have kits.

"Not really," Leafroot yawned and stretched. "Besides, Oakfur says that since you're caring for the whole Clan, it's like they're all your kits." Crowroot tilted his head to one side.

"Does that make me your kit?" Leafroot purred, and cuffed Crowroot gently over the ear, balancing on her hind legs.

"Squirrel-brain." She said fondly.

"Crowroot!" Crowroot looked up from his conversation with his sister to see Swallowflight standing near to Branchtail, the clan deputy. Crowroot nodded goodbye to Leafroot, and trotted over to his teacher.

"You up for a hunting lesson?" She asked him. Crowroot's ears flicked with excitement.

"You bet! Who else is coming?"

"Sandypetal and Jaggedscar, and they're bringing Brackenroot and Softroot with them," She answered. "It would do both you and the other learners good for them to try teaching you some hunting teniques." Crowroot nodded.

Sandypetal, Jaggedscar, Brackenroot and Softroot walked up to them.

"You two ready to go?" Sandypetal asked, and Swallowflight nodded.

The six cats left the camp, and emerged into the forest. Crowroot shook himself, fluffing out his pelt against the cold winds that blew down from SnowClan's territory. The group of cats walked to a small clearing, the floor littered with dead leaves. The learners were taught battle moves here, as well as stalking techniques.

"We're going to try to find some birds today," Sandypetal mewed. "Brackenroot, can you tell Crowroot what the most important part of hunting birds is?" Her learner puffed out his chest.

"As well as making sure not to stand upwind of the bird, you need to be extra careful not to make a sound or any sudden movements that might alert the bird, because it will fly away at the first sign of danger." Sandypetal nodded her head in approval, and Jaggedscar stepped forward.

"And Softroot, would you show him the best way to stalk a bird?" Softroot nodded.

"You have to keep yourself low to the ground, but remember not to go so low that your belly fur brushes the leaves, and keep your tail straight out behind you," She sunk to the ground. "And when you move forward, slide your paws forward, keeping them close to the ground," She slid forward, smoother than a snake. "Make sure not to go too fast, and then at the last moment, you pounce!" She pushed off the ground with an impressive jump, and trapped a falling leaf in her forepaws.

"Very good, Softroot!" Jaggedscar praised his learner.

"Do you think you're ready to practice bird stalking, Crowroot?" Swallowflight asked him. He nodded, and pressed himself to the ground, trying to copy what Softroot had showed him.

"You're too low," Sandypetal pointed out gently. "You're going to rustle the leaves with your belly fur." Crowroot lifted himself up slightly. He slid his paws forward, careful not to disturb any leaves with them, and after stalking for a bit, pounced on a leaf that had just fallen to the ground.

"Not bad for a first try," Jaggedscar nodded. "You're movement could've been smoother, but you're balance was good."

"Yes," Swallowflight agreed. "You do need to work on the smoothness of your stalking, but that will come with time and everything else was good." Crowroot nodded, pleased with the praise.

"Can we go hunting now?" Brackenroot kneaded the ground impatiently. Sandypetal fixed him with a hard look.

"We'll go when Swallowflight feels her learner has sufficiently learnt the bird stalking crouch," She sighed slightly. "Today's patrol is about Crowroot's learning, not your desire to hunt, Brackenroot." Her learner dipped his head.

"Sorry." He muttered.

"Well, if Crowroot feels ready, I see no reason why we can't go hunting. My teacher used to always teach me that one of the best ways to learn to hunt is to hunt actual animals, not just leaves," Swallowflight said, and turned to Crowroot. "Do you want to try bird hunting?" Crowroot nodded, his paws tingling with excitement.

The patrol walked out into the forest, their mouths open to try and find a bird. After a little while, Sandypetal signalled with her tail to the right. They followed the scent trail, and before long Crowroot glimpsed a robin pecking at the bottom of an old oak tree. The cats crouched a little way away from it, keeping themselves downwind.

"This one is yours, Crowroot," Swallowflight whispered. "Remember what Softroot showed you." Crowroot nodded, and crept forward.

He kept his belly close to the ground and slid slowly forward. The robin was focussed on finding seeds at the base of a tree, that it didn't even notice him as he got closer and closer. When he was far enough away to jump for it, he tensed his muscles, preparing to pounce. He took a deep breath, extended his claws, and jumped.

His forepaws landed squarely on the bird, and he bit down on its neck, causing it to go limp. He picked it up in his mouth, and turned around to face the others, tail flicking with pride.

"That was amazing!" Softroot stared at him with her mouth open. "I remember my first attempt at hunting wasn't half as good as that! The bird flew away before I even had the chance to pounce!" Swallowflight weaved her way out of the bush the other cats were sheltering beneath.

"That was very good," She purred proudly. "Keep up like that and you'll soon be one of the best hunters in the Clan!"

They hunted for a while longer, but Crowroot didn't manage to catch anything else. They walked back to camp, and Crowroot held his head high as he walked in carrying his robin, his tail flicking back and forth with pride.

"You can take that robin straight to the seniors, Crowroot," Swallowflight murmured to him. "If I recall correctly, Mistleaf was always partial to a fresh robin." Crowroot nodded, and headed over to the seniors den where Robinfeather and Littlestep were lying outside the entrance, basking in the afternoon sunshine.

"Hello, Crowroot!" Crowroot dipped his head to Robinfeather's friendly greeting. "Did you catch that robin yourself?" Crowroot carefully placed the robin at his paws.

"Yes," he said. "Swallowflight said I should bring it to Mistleaf." Robinfeather nodded towards the den.

"She's in there. If she's asleep, though, don't wake her. She won't thank you for it if you do." Crowroot nodded, and picked up his robin. He went into the den, and saw the blue-grey pelt of Mistleaf, her flanks rising and falling as she slept. He left his robin on the shredded grass beside her, and backed out of the den.

**TWO MOONS LATER**

Crowroot nosed his way out of the learner den, flicking his ears as a few water drops splashed onto them. It had been raining most of the night, and everything in the camp was soaked. He fluffed out his pelt to try and protect him from the cold air. He saw Leafroot counting berries outside the healer den, and turned to walk over to her, but was stopped when he heard someone calling his name.

"Crowroot! Crowroot, wait!" He turned to see a small, creamy ginger kit running up to him.

"Hey, Fawnkit," He greeted the kit. Fawnkit and her brothers had often played with him and Leafroot when they had been in the nursery, and they had stayed close friends even after Crowroot and Leafroot became learners. "What is it?" The kit paused to catch her breath.

"We're becoming learners!" She burst out. "Me, Batkit and Icekit! We're becoming learners today!" Crowroot purred.

"Great!" He said, remembering how excited he had been on the day of his learner ceremony.

"I can't wait to learn to hunt and fight and everything!" The tip of her tail was flicking with excitement. "Maybe we'll even get to go on patrols together sometime!" Crowroot smiled at her enthusiasm.

"We probably will be able to." She purred.

"Fawnkit! Come have a piece of this sparrow!" Fawnkit's dark grey brother, Batkit, called to her.

"Ok!" She called back. "I'll see you later, Crowroot!" Crowroot dipped his head to her, and she ran off to join her brothers.

Crowroot walked over to Leafroot, who was wrapping up packages of leaves, berries and petals.

"Hey, Leafroot," He mewed. "What're you doing?"

"Strengthening herbs," She replied. "It's the half-moon tonight, and Oakfur and I are going to the LightWater pool." Crowroot nodded. He had heard about the pool of water that formed at a deep part of the river and held within it memories of every event that had ever happened, and the spirits of cats that had passed on. Supposedly, the healers were the only ones who could unlock the secrets of the pool, unless LightClan gave permission to another cat, such as when a deputy became a chief.

"Did you know that Fawnkit, Batkit and Icekit are becoming learners today?" He asked, and Leafroot purred.

"Yes, Batkit woke me up before it was even new-light to tell me," she carefully folded a big leaf over the small pile of strengthening herbs, using her muzzle to accommodate only having one front paw. "Apparently Softroot, Brackenroot and Mouseroot are becoming fighters today as well."

"Really?" Crowroot wasn't very surprised. Brackenroot had been bragging about how well he did in his final assessment for the whole of yesterday. "How did you find out?"

"I heard Oakfur talking to Mosslight and Branchtail about it last night."

"I can't wait until I become a fighter." Leafroot purred.

"You'll be the best fighter this Clan has ever seen." Crowroot licked her in-between her ears.

"And you'll be the greatest healer. I bet legends will be told about the great healer, Leafroot." Leafroot laughed.

"Except I hope I don't stay a 'root forever. I'd like to gain my full name at some point." Crowroot chuckled, then heard Swallowflight call him.

"Crowroot, new-light patrol!"

"Got to go." He brushed muzzles with his sister as a parting, and trotted out of the den over to Swallowflight, who was standing with Eaglestripe and Poppyfall, and their learners, Hawkroot and Snakeroot.

"… patrolling the SnowClan boarder," He heard Eaglestripe say as he got closer. "Mosslight says they've marked every blade of grass along the border."

"You don't think they're planning an attack, do you?" Poppyfall said nervously. Eaglestripe's tail twitched.

"I don't know. But they did seem more reserved and less friendly than usual at the last Meeting."

"Well if they do attack I'll be ready for them." Hawkroot, Eaglestripe's learner, hunched down into an attack crouch, his tail lashing back and forth. Eaglestripe cuffed him gently over the ear.

"We don't even know if they're going to attack. Mosslight just wants us to be careful." Hawkroot straightened up as Crowroot reached them.

"Hey, Crowroot!" Hawkroot greeted him.

"Morning, Hawkroot." Crowroot replied.

"We're going on a patrol of the SnowClan border," Swallowflight said. "Mosslight wants us to check for scents on our side and remark the border markers," Crowroot nodded. "We also might be trying to catch something for the seniors and mothers on our way back."

The cats rose to all four paws, and walked over to the fallen tree that marked the entrance to the camp. The giant oak had fallen so long ago that no cat could remember a time when it was still standing. It had a gap beneath it, big enough to let a cat through, and marked one edge of the clearing. The rest of the clearing was surrounded by earth walls that had piled up over time until they were high enough to form a sheltered clearing. The dens were dug out into the sides of the clearing, except for Mosslight's den, which was a large hole in the trunk of the great tree; a tall, thick trunked tree that grew at the edge of the clearing.

Crowroot followed the other cats, his muscles working hard as they walked to the SnowClan boarder. Even though he had only recently become a learner, his body and legs were already hard muscled and sinewy from the long treks across the territory.

The scents and sounds of prey made Crowroot's mouth water, but he had to remind himself that they were on a border patrol, and would be hunting on the way back.

After walking for a while, they reached the border. Crowroot wrinkled his nose at the unusually strong smell of SnowClan, which smelt like they had recently marked the border, probably earlier in the day.

"Swallowflight, Crowroot, you take this part of the border," Eaglestripe started giving instructions, pointing his tail to the left. "Poppyfall and Snakeroot, you two take the other side," Poppyfall dipped her head to the senior warrior. "Hawkroot, you and I will take the centre stretch of the border," his learner nodded. "Remark the border, and if you scent anything unusual on our side of the border, report back immediately."

Crowroot followed Swallowflight to the end of the border, and the two started sniffing their way along the border, and remarking it on their side. After they had made their way a little way along the border, Crowroot smelt something strange on their side of the border.

"Swallowflight, come here!" He opened his mouth slightly to better smell the scent. His teacher hurried over from where she was marking a tree, and smelt the clump of grass that had the strange scent on it. She wrinkled her nose.

"Well, it's definitely not SnowClan, that's for sure. It's too sour to be their clan scent, but it's definitely a cat, and there's not just one of them."

"What could it be then, if it's not a clan cat?" Crowroot felt a flicker of fear in his stomach. What if the strange cats were enemies? "Could it be a band of rouges or loners?" Swallowflight looked up from smelling the clump of grass.

"I don't know," She shook her head slightly. "But we should inform Eaglestripe at once. Come on!" Swallowflight started running along the border, and Crowroot followed her until they came to Eaglestripe and Hawkroot.

"Eaglestripe," Swallowflight took a moment to catch her breath. "We scented something on our side of the border."

"SnowClan…?" Eaglestripe wondered. Swallowflight shook her head.

"No, it's not the scent of any clan I know. Come and see for yourself." The four cats made their way along the border. Eaglestripe and Swallowflight walked next to each other, and Crowroot and Hawkroot fell in step behind them.

"Isn't this exciting?" Hawkroot whispered to Crowroot, his eyes shining with anticipation. "Strange cats on the mountain!"

"If they invade camp it won't be so exciting!" Hawkroot sighed.

"You're no fun, Crowroot. Don't you want to have a chance to prove yourself in battle?" Crowroot shrugged.

"I guess. I just don't like the thought of the clan being hurt." The two stopped talking as they reached the place where Swallowflight and Crowroot had scented.

Eaglestripe breathed in the strange scent, his tail tip flicking. After a few moments, he spoke.

"Well, it certainly isn't the scent of a clan. It's probably a group of loners who won't bother us, but make sure to mark–"

Before he was able to finish speaking he was interrupted by the sound of Brackenroot racing through the trees, calling out to them.

"Eaglestripe! Eaglestripe!" The learner reached them, and stopped to catch his breath. "Mosslight… needs you… back at camp… band of rouges… she… she wants all the… the fighters in camp." Brackenroot was panting from the long run through the forest to reach them. Eaglestripe looked concerned, and turned to Hawkroot and Crowroot.

"You two go and alert Poppyfall and Snakeroot. Go with them back to camp, and tell them what Brackenroot's just told us." The two learners nodded, and dashed off towards where Poppyfall and Snakeroot would be marking the border.

Crowroot's heart was pounding inside of him, not just from having to suddenly run at top speed across the mountain. Rouges were in their camp! He guessed they were the same cats they had scented near the border, and wondered what they wanted. Perhaps they were just passing through, and needed a place to stay for the night.

Poppyfall and Snakeroot came into sight, and Hawkroot called out to them. They walked over to the two learners.

"Rouges in our camp!" Hawkroot blurted out.

"Mosslight wants every cat back in camp to see what they want!" Crowroot said. Poppyfall's eyes widened, and nodded. The four of them started running back to the camp.

It was a long and hard run, and by the time the camp came into view, Crowroot's heart felt like it was about to burst out of his chest, and his lungs were screaming for air. They ran through the camp entrance, and Crowroot saw the rouges for the first time.

They were a big group, about the same size as SkyClan, but seemed to be filled with only warriors, and a few learners and kits. No cats older than a senior warrior were among their ranks. They all were sat close together, being inspected by the curious clan cats. Crowroot nosed his way through the warriors until he was beside Leafroot, who was sat next to Oakfur who was speaking hurriedly to Mosslight and Branchtail.

"Do you know who they are?" He hissed to Leafroot. She shook her head, her eyes wide with fear.

"I have no idea. They just came into camp and the big one there," she nodded towards a powerful looking tabby with numerous scars and fierce amber eyes. "He demanded to speak with our chief, but Mosslight didn't want to speak until the whole clan was here, unless he declared a battle."

Mosslight stepped forward with Oakfur and Branchtail before his sister could say more, and the big tabby stepped a little way away from his band of cats as well, flanked by a skinny dark tom cat and a beautiful silver tabby who looked to be about Crowroot's age.

"Greetings," Mosslight said, polite but guarded. "My name is Mosslight, and I'm am chief of SkyClan. This is my deputy, Branchtail," She motioned to her left with her tail. "And this is our healer, Oakfur." Oakfur nodded his head to the other cat.

"I am Flint. This is Nettle," He nodded to the dark tom. "And this is Rain." The pretty silver tabby dipped her head.

"And what are you doing on our territory?" Mosslight's tone wasn't accusatory, simply curious.

"We have travelled a long time, and lost many cats," his amber eyes glinted as they swept over the crowd of SkyClan cats. "Some died of hunger or thirst, others were killed, and some were left behind," Mosslight tipped her head to the side. "Unlike your clan, Mosslight, we don't waste our time on the weak. Those who are old, sick, or… unable to fight," his gaze rested on Leafroot, who arched her back and hissed. "Are left behind. Only the strong or young are allowed to remain."

"What is your point?" Mosslight asked.

"We are merely looking for a new place to stay." Mosslight narrowed her eyes.

"And what does that have to do with us?"

"We want your mountain."

**Oooo, cliffhanger! Do you guys like it? Hate it? Have no feelings whatsoever on it? Let me know! Also if you have suggestions for stuff, like fighter/warrior names for the learners, please let me know, because let me tell you, it's very hard coming up with soooo many names for the cats in the clans. **

**Talking about cats in the clans, I looked back at my first chapter stuff, and I realised I don't have nearly enough fighters in my clans, so I did add some more, but instead of posting another information chapter, I'm just gonna continue writing and you guys will probably get to know the new cats soon. At least I added them at the second chapter and not, like, at the 100th. IDEK if this story will get to 100 chapters, but WHATEVER!**

**Anyways, 2x out!**


	3. Chapter 3

"What?" Branchtail hissed, as every SkyClan cats' back arched and their fur stood on end. Crowroot bared his teeth at the invaders, anger bubbling up inside him. How dare these strange cats waltz into their camp, and demand that they be given the mountain? There was no way the clans would let themselves ever be driven away from their home! Mosslight raised her tail for silence, and the camp fell quiet.

"You realise there are other clans who will be just as ready as we are to fight for their home." Mosslight warned. Flint dipped his head, his eyes glinting dangerously.

"We are aware of that. However, I think you'll find that although we are only the size of one of your clans, we are much stronger."

"Stronger?" Crowroot heard Brackenroot spit at the cats. Flint turned his gaze onto the learner.

"Yes, stronger," He tilted his head to the side. "We are quite willing to prove it to you, youngster. If you wish to prove yourself, fight Rain." At the mention of her name, the silver tabby slid smoothly into an attack crouch, and slid out her claws. Crowroot glanced over to Brackenroot, and saw his eyes stretch wide in fear.

"What's wrong?" Rain hissed through bared teeth. "Scared? Not so confidant now, are you?"

"Our learners will not fight." Mosslight mewed calmly. Flint snarled softly.

"But they have to," He bared his long, yellowed fangs. "Or we will kill you all right now. But, if you learner defeats Rain, we'll leave the mountain. If she wins, we will attack in one moon." Mosslight swallowed, and Flint turned his eyes on Brackenroot.

Crowroot saw Brackenroot stare back, absolutely paralysed by the giant cat, and unable to move forward towards Rain.

"It seems your original learner is too cowardly to fight Rain," Mosslight snarled at Flint, showing open hostility for the first time. "Is there anyone else willing to fight her?" The clearing was silent, until, almost on an impulse, Crowroot stepped forward.

"I'll do it," He said, ignoring the gasps and murmurs of surprise from his clanmates. "I'll fight her." He knew he hadn't been training for as long as the other learners, but Rain couldn't be that much older than him, and he had learnt a lot in his fighting lessons.

"No, Crowroot…" He heard Leafroot whisper. Ignoring her, he made his way forward until he was standing facing Rain.

"Well, it seems you have at least one courageous learner," Mosslight hissed slightly at Flint's taunting tone.

"Good luck, Crowroot." Branchtail nodded to him. Crowroot nodded back, took a deep breath, and crouched down, waiting for a command to start fighting. It seemed Rain was doing the same thing.

Nerves fluttered in his stomach. The future of all the clans rested in his paws, and whether he won or lost. The surrounding cats moved backwards slightly to create a sort of an arena for him and Rain to fight in. Rain flattened herself to the ground, and slid out her long, thin claws. Crowroot swallowed, trying to calm himself.

"Begin, Rain." Flint's calm, quiet mew sounded, and Rain launched herself at Crowroot.

Crowroot rolled to the side to avoid her outstretched paws, and lashed out and hit her in the side, though he kept his claws sheathed. Rain landed perfectly, despite having to suddenly adapt to not landing on Crowroot, and spun around with one of her front forelegs stretched out, and caught him on his cheek. Her claws tore at him, and he jerked away, hissing in pain. It became obvious that this would not be a battle won on skill alone, this would be a battle won by beating each other down until they're too wounded to continue.

"What's the matter?" Rain hissed tauntingly, noticing his pause. "Are you scared as well?" Crowroot snarled at her.

"You wish." He leapt at her, his claws and teeth bared, and landed on her back, catching her off guard. He bit down on her scruff, and tore at her shoulders with his claws.

He heard her yowl slightly with pain, but she was still able to fight, and rolled over, dislodging Crowroot from her back. They both scrambled up, but Crowroot was slightly slower, and Rain leapt at him, taking advantage of the half a second she had before he got up. She fastened her teeth into his front leg, and tore at whatever part of him she could reach with her claws.

Crowroot hissed in pain, and used his one free front leg to claw at her back and ears. Eventually, he managed to twist his head around so that he could grab onto her scruff again, and he wrenched her off of him.

The two of them circled each other for a while, both of them were panting and bleeding heavily. Rain had a clump of fur hanging raggedly from her shoulder, and Crowroot was blinded in one eye from blood running down from a scratch along his eyebrow.

"Finish him, Rain!" Flint yowled, and the young silver she-cat launched herself at Crowroot.

Caught off guard, she pinned Crowroot to the ground. She fastened her teeth firmly into his ear, kept one of her front paws firmly on his shoulder, and one of her back paws on his tail. Crowroot tried to struggle, but he couldn't move against her strong claws. Eventually, he had no choice but to admit defeat.

"I believe, Mosslight," Flint mewed smugly. "That my learner has won." The band of rouges in the clearing cheered, and Rain stepped off him, exhausted, but her eyes shone.

Crowroot stood up, anger and embarrassment coursing through his veins. He watched as Rain walked slowly, limping slightly, back to Flint and Nettle.

"It is decided," Flint mewed. "We will attack the Clans in one moon." He turned, and walked out of the entrance with his cats following him.

Crowroot managed to stay on his paws for as long as it took for all the rouges to leave, but when the last of them had left through the tree-tunnel, his legs shook, and he collapsed onto the floor of the clearing, exhaustion and pain washing over him.

Leafroot hurriedly hopped over to his side, and peered worriedly down at him.

"Crowroot!" She cried out. "Don't die, Crowroot!"

"I'm not gonna die," Crowroot mumbled. "It just hurts, is all."

"Do you think you can walk over to the healer den? Then me and Oakfur can help heal you."

Crowroot struggled to his feet, grunting with the effort, and limped over to the healer den, being supported by Leafroot. The healer den was the biggest den that was dug out into the walls. It had a rather small entrance, that opened into a bigger cave, with a grass and feather lined floor. There was a small tunnel was dug out at the back of the big cave, and if you followed that round a corner you came into the storeroom, with stacks of herbs and berries piled against the walls.

"You lie down here," Leafroot lead him over to a pile of grass and feathers, and laid him down. "I'll go fetch Oakfur." She hopped hurriedly out the entrance, and Crowroot was left alone.

He looked around the den from where he lay. He had been in here only once before, when he was a kit sick with whitecough. The den was filled with the sweet, musty smell of dried herbs, and had a comfortable, safe feeling about it.

He looked up as he heard movement at the entrance, and saw Oakfur entering with Leafroot behind him. The dark brown healer padded up to him, and gave him a thorough sniff from head to toe, inspecting his wounds.

"Leafroot," Oakfur called over his learner. "Go fetch me some dock, daisy petals, comfrey and horsetail." Leafroot nodded, and hopped down the small tunnel. She returned shortly with her mouth full of leaves and petals.

She laid them down, and Oakfur nodded approvingly. "Now give his wounds a good lick while I make up a poultice." Leafroot lowered her head, and rasped her tongue over Crowroot's pelt, brushing the fur away from his cuts. When she was done, Oakfur took her place, and started licking the juice of the chewed up herbs into his wounds. It stung, but Crowroot was too exhausted to complain.

"Wrap his front paw in comfrey, Leafroot," instructed Oakfur. "It got sprained when Rain bit it. I'll go fetch some cobweb." Leafroot carefully fastened the comfrey around his paw while Oakfur was gone.

"You really scared me, Crowroot," Leafroot murmured. "Why'd you have to fight her? I thought she was gonna kill you!"

"I wouldn't have let her kill me," he mumbled. "I'm not ready to join LightClan just yet. And I had to go forward; no other cat was going to." Leafroot licked him across his ear.

Oakfur came back with a pawful of cobweb, which he started to apply to Crowroot's wounds. When he was finished, he stood back and said:

"He should be good now. I've got to go speak with Mosslight and Branchtail now. Leafroot, you keep an eye on him encase anything happens." Leafroot nodded, and curled up next to Crowroot, licking her brother in-between his ears.

Crowroot relaxed, the soft rasping of Leafroot's tongue sooth him, reminding him of when he was a kit in the nursery. He tried to keep his eyes open, but he was too exhausted, and soon let the darkness of a deep, healing sleep envelope him.

"Crowroot!" Crowroot was jerked awake by a voice calling his name. He wasn't sure how long he had slept for, but judging by the soft golden-purple light streaming through the healer den entrance, he guessed it was twilight.

"Crowroot!" The voice came again, and the speaker ran into view. Fawnkit, followed by her two brothers, Batkit and Icekit, ran into the den.

"Oakfur _finally _said we could come and see you," Batkit mewed. "He made us wait until _low-light_!" The dark grey kit walked up and sniffed at a long scratch on Crowroot's side.

"Yuck!" He exclaimed. "It smells disgusting!" Icekit laughed.

"That's the herbs, silly. Of course it's gonna smell gross," the white kit turned to Crowroot. "So anyway, what was it like? Fighting a real rouge cat?" His eyes shone with curiosity.

"Scary," he replied. "She was obviously used to fighting with claws, and wasn't afraid to hurt me."

"When I'm a fighter," Batkit boasted, puffing out his chest. "I'm going to be so good in battle that no rouge would ever dare fight me!" Icekit snorted.

"Yeah, right. You can't even beat Shadekit in a fight!"

"Can too!" Batkit leapt on top of his brother, and the two of them started wrestling, kicking up huge amounts of grass and feathers.

"Hey, you two, if you want to do that, do it in the clearing where you won't make such a mess." Crowroot gently scolded them.

"Okay, bye Crowroot!" The two of them said together, and tumbled out of the healer den.

"You alright? You've been awfully quiet," Crowroot spoke to Fawnkit, who had sat silently next to him while her brothers were talking. "It's not like you to be quiet." Fawnkit shuffled her paws awkwardly.

"I was so scared you'd die," she said at last. "When I saw her leap at you with her claws outstretched, I thought she was gonna kill you for sure," after a moment's hesitation, the creamy kit buried her nose in Crowroot's fur. "I don't want you to die, Crowroot."

"Don't worry," Crowroot mewed softly, drawing his tongue over her ear. "I don't plan on dying for a while yet." Fawnkit nodded, and drew back.

"Mosslight said she's gonna postpone our learner ceremony until tomorrow," she tilted her head to the side. "Do you think you'll be able to come and see?"

"I hope so," he meowed. "I wouldn't want to miss it." Fawnkit smiled, then briefly pushed her nose into his fur again.

"Well, bye Crowroot!" She said, and trotted out of the den, seeming much happier than she did earlier.

Crowroot lay in the grass for a while longer, not sleeping, just resting. Then, when it was nearly no-light, Leafroot and Oakfur came into the den.

"You alright, Crowroot?" Oakfur asked him. "Need a poppy seed to help you sleep?" Crowroot nodded.

"Yeah, if that's alright." Oakfur nodded to Leafroot to signal for her to get a poppy seed from the store. She came back soon after and laid a poppy seed on a leaf in front of Crowroot. Crowroot licked it up, and soon felt the effects of the poppy seed, and fell asleep.

Crowroot woke up in the morning feeling so stiff he could barely move. His wounds hurt and his claws ached from where he had dug them hard into the ground as he fought.

He heard movement and looked over to where Leafroot and Oakfur were sleeping. The two of them were stirring, and Leafroot lifted her head, blinking sleep out of her eyes. She stood up and, noticing Crowroot was awake, walked over to him.

"How're you?" She said softly to avoid waking her teacher.

"Stiff," he replied. "My claws hurt and my wounds really sting." Leafroot sniffed a long scratch on his side.

"You need a new poultice, but I don't want to do anything until Oakfur's awake," she drew back and licked her paw, drawing it over her ear. "Probably if you want to help with your stiffness you could walk to the prey pile to get your own breakfast to loosen your muscles."

"Good idea, Leafroot," Crowroot looked up at Oakfur, who had woken during their conversation. He looked approvingly at his learner. "Once we've changed your poultice and dressing you can walk over to the prey pile to get something to eat."

Leafroot and Oakfur changed his dressings, and then helped him up. Crowroot walked stiffly over to the prey pile, where he selected a small sparrow for himself. He carried it back to outside the healer den, and settled down to eat.

As he ate, the camp started waking up around him. Brightclaw followed her two-moon old kits out of the nursery, and fetched herself a piece of prey which her kits sniffed at curiously. Eaglestripe emerged from the fighter den, his grey flecked muzzle stretched wide in a yawn. He would be moving to the senior den before long, Crowroot thought, probably soon after Hawkroot became a fighter.

Mosslight jumped down from her den onto a branch of the Great Tree, and surveyed her clan with proud eyes before yowling the words:

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Great Tree for a clan meeting." Crowroot stiffly got to his feet, and padded over to the base of the Great Tree. Leafroot hopped up beside him and sat down, watching Mosslight intently. Crowroot heard a scuffling sound behind him, and purred slightly with amusement as he saw Fawnkit, Batkit and Icekit tumbling out of the nursery, followed by their mother, Owlfrost. They tripped over themselves as the dashed across the clearing, each determined to be the first to reach the base of the Great Tree.

"I am proud of my clan," were Mosslight's first words. "Nothing stands in our way, nothing deters us from being the best cats we can be, both in battle and out. Hardships and combat always find their way to us, but we stand against them, protecting ourselves and others who are too young, old or sick to fight. I couldn't be prouder than I am of you, fellow clanmates, and I say that we will stand strong against the rouge clan, we will defeat them, and we will defend our mountain from the intruders that threaten our borders, because we are fighters, pure and strong. And we fight with the strength of LightClan. So, my dear friends and clanmates, will you stand with me against the rouges, purging our territory of them once and for all?" A chorus of yowls greeted her words, Crowroot joining his voice to them. Mosslight was right; no matter what came their way, SkyClan would defeat it, proving themselves in battle to be stronger than any who opposed them.

"Now, today I have three new fighters to name, and three new learners," Mosslight's eyes gleamed proudly. "Brackenroot, Softroot and Mouseroot, stand forward," the three learners padded forward, their heads raised, their coats glossy and smooth, with hard muscles rippling underneath them.

"I, Mosslight, chief of SkyClan, call upon my fighter ancestors to look down on these three learners," Mosslight's voice rippled throughout the clearing. "They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as fighters in their turn. Softroot, Brackenroot and Mouseroot, do you promise to uphold the fighter code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your lives?"

"I do." Softroot breathed.

"I do." Mouseroot said determinedly.

"I-I do." Brackenroot stammered slightly as he whispered his line. He looked down, and Crowroot suspected he was thinking about how he had backed out of a battle with Rain yesterday.

"Then by the power of LightClan I give you your fighter names," Mosslight jumped down from the Great Tree and came to stand before Softroot, looking into her eyes. "Softroot, from this moment you shall be known as Softpelt. LightClan honours your thoughtfulness and integrity," Softpelt nodded and stepped back. Mosslight moved over so that she was standing in front of Mouseroot. "Mouseroot, you shall be known as Mouseear. LightClan honours your kindness and skill at hunting. And Brackenroot," she moved until she was standing in front of Brackenroot, who looked at the ground. "You will be known as Brackenclaw. LightClan honours your patience and your honesty. We welcome you all as fighters of LightClan!"

"Softpelt! Mouseear! Brackenclaw!" The clan yowled the new fighters' names, greeting them excitedly as they made their way back into the crowd.

"Now, I have another one of my favourite duties to perform," Mosslight mewed, and the commotion settled down. "Fawnkit, Batkit and Icekit, step forward." the three kits walked solemnly forward, but Crowroot saw their paws twitching and knew that it was taking all their self-control not to dash forward to Mosslight.

"Batkit," Mosslight moved forward to the dark grey kit. "From this day until you receive your fighter name, you will be known as Batroot," the learners called out his new name until Mosslight raised her tail for silence. "Squirreltail!" The long-furred, russet fighter padded forward, her tail twitching with excitement.

"You are without a learner since Beechpelt became a fighter. He had a fine teacher in you, and I expect you to use the same training expertise to train Batroot."

Squirreltail nodded, and ran her tail along Batroot's back, accepting him as her learner. The two of them stepped back into the crowd of cats, and Mosslight moved to stand in front of Icekit.

"Icekit, from this day until you receive your fighter name, you will be known as Iceroot," As they had with Batroot, the learners chanted Iceroot's name. "Sparrowcloud," the small brown tom padded forward, his eyes gleaming with pride and excitement. "You are a fine fighter, courageous and strong in battle. I know Iceroot is in safe paws." Sparrowcloud nodded, and brushed his tail along his new learner's back.

"And finally, Fawnkit," Fawnkit stepped forward, quivering with nerves and excitement. "From this day, until you receive your fighter name, you will be known as Fawnroot."

"Fawnroot! Fawnroot!" Crowroot lead the chant for his friend.

"Rosetail," The brown and white tabby she cat stepped forward. "You have proven yourself in combat multiple times, and have a great knowledge of the fighter code. Fawnroot will have a great teacher in you." Rosetail nodded, touched Fawnroot with her tail, and they retreated into the crowd.

"Batroot! Iceroot! Fawnroot!" The whole clan chanted their names.

After the clan had broken up, Crowroot saw Rosetail bound up to Crowroot's teacher, Swallowflight, and press their muzzles together.

"Isn't this great?" Rosetail said. "We can take our learners out together and train them together and everything!"

"I'm so happy for you." Swallowflight purred, and the two walked across the camp, their pelts brushing, and Crowroot remembered that the two young she-cats were littermates.

"Crowroot! Crowroot, Crowroot, Crowroot, Crowroot!" Crowroot heard Fawnroot calling his name, and turned to see the young cat running up to him.

"You came to my learner ceremony!" She purred.

"Did you think I wouldn't?"

"Well, you looked pretty hurt yesterday, but you did promise so I was expecting you to be there," Fawnroot gave a little skip of excitement. "I'm _finally _a learner! I can't wait to go on patrols and learn to hunt and _everything! _When do you think Rosetail will take me on my first patrol? When did you go on your first patrol?" Crowroot stifled a purr of amusement at her eagerness.

"Swallowflight took me on my first patrol right after my ceremony, but it's different for every cat," Crowroot yawned and stretched, wincing as the claw marks on his sides stung. "You'll have to ask Rosetail to take you out if you want to go on patrol." Fawnroot nodded.

"Ok, I'll go talk to her. Bye Crowroot!" Crowroot nodded goodbye as the small cat dashed across the clearing to where Rosetail stood still talking with Swallowflight.

Crowroot smiled, remembering how excited he had been on his learner ceremony, before limping back towards the healer den. He flopped down outside the entrance, and rolled onto his side, enjoying the warmth of the sun on his pelt. He closed his eyes and relaxed, before a paw poked him in the side.

"What're you doing, lazing around out here?" He lifted his head to see the teasing eyes of Leafroot.

"It's not like I can go hunting with the others, or help reinforce the camp," he sighed, and flopped his head to the floor. "I'm so _bored_!" He complained. Leafroot laughed.

"Well, if you get up you can come and help me sort herbs," she poked him again. "Come on, I'll teach you what to do."

Crowroot stoop up with a grunt, and followed Leafroot into the healer den. She into the tunnel at the back of the cave, and after a slight hesitation, Crowroot followed her. It felt weird to have earth pressing in around him, and the damp smell of mud and worms and other things that lived below the ground pressed in on him, filling his nostrils until he couldn't smell anything else. Crowroot sighed in relief when the two young learners emerged into the storage cave. It was still underground, but at least it was filled with the familiar scents of grass and feathers that covered the floor, and the musty, slightly sweet scent of herbs.

The cave was large, larger than any of the other dens, and had grooves dug into the earthen walls that acted as shelves for the herbs that Leafroot and Oakfur collected. The only light came from the tunnel, so Crowroot could only just make out his sister's form in the darkness, and the small piles of herbs on the shelves.

"Look, all you have to do it sort these," Leafroot nudged a pile of herbs towards him. Their mixed scents assaulted Crowroot's senses, some sweet and good, others bitter and horrid. "Just put the ones that are the same shape in a pile. I'll help you, so we should be done in no time." Leafroot used her one front paw to pull a leaf from the pile, and started snagging other leaves that were the same shape as it and laying them on top of the first leaf, created a neat, even pile. Crowroot followed her example and pulled out an oak leaf, those were easy to recognise, and started piling other oak leaves on top of it.

Before long, the two learners had sorted all the leaves, and Leafroot began to stack them onto the shelves. Leafroot then moved along the shelves, carefully smelling the piles of leaves and checking how many leaves they had left in each pile.

"Nearly out of daisy," she muttered. "We'll need that for the battle with the rouges," she turned to Crowroot. "We've got a few herbs we're running low on, want to come ask Oakfur if we can go and collect them?" Crowroot nodded, and the two of them left the healer den.

"Oakfur!" Leafroot called to her teacher, who was just emerging from the senior den. "Can we go and collect some herbs? We're nearly out of a few of them and I thought since Crowroot has nothing else to do…" Oakfur nodded, and Leafroot purred happily. "Thanks, Oakfur!"

The two learners walked across the clearing, but Crowroot stopped when he noticed Iceroot padding grumpily towards the entrance to the camp.

"Iceroot!" Crowroot called to the white tom. "What's wrong?" Iceroot sighed in annoyance.

"Sparrowcloud is making me clean out the nursery," he huffed. "I thought we were going to do training or something, but I get stuck cleaning up after the kits."

"You'll get out on patrol soon enough," Leafroot assured him. "But since you're cleaning out the nursery, why not come with us? I know some of the herbs I need to gather grow near some great grass patches, and it'll be more fun if we do it together." Iceroot looked up.

"Really?" Leafroot nodded, and Iceroot trotted over to them, his tail up, looking happier than he had been before.

The three of them padded out of the camp, walking slowly due to Crowroot's limp and Leafroot's missing leg. Leafroot lead them to a patch of daisies, growing in abundance in a patch of sunlight, surrounded by thick, lush grass.

"I'll gather the daisies," she said. "Crowroot can gather the grass with you, Iceroot. You'll probably need more grass than just one cat can carry for the nursery."

Crowroot showed Iceroot just how to pull up the grass so that you didn't shred the stalks too much. If that happened, the foul tasting green juices of the grass would seep out all over the kits and queens, staining their pelts.

The two of them worked together pulling up the long, soft grass stems, and soon they had a large pile. Crowroot signalled to Iceroot to stop collecting the grass, and grabbed up roughly half of the pile in his jaws. Iceroot did the same, and after checking that Leafroot had picked up her daisies and was ready, Crowroot began to walk back to the camp, walking slower than usual due to his slight limp from his injured paw, and Leafroot's missing leg.

When they got back to camp, Leafroot left Crowroot and Iceroot to prepare the daisies for drying, and Crowroot walked to the nursery with Iceroot to help him clear the nursery. The three mothers and their kits were out in the camp, so the two of them were interrupted as they pulled all the old grass and feathers into a pile outside the nursery entrance, and started covering the floor in a soft, fresh layer of grass.

"Hey, Crowroot?" Iceroot said as he dragged a pile of grass over to the entrance.

"Yeah?"

"Do you really think there's gonna be a battle?" Crowroot looked up. Iceroot was looking down, clawing nervously at his ball of grass.

"Probably," Crowroot answered eventually. "Unless the other chiefs submit and agree to Flint's command to leave the mountain, which I can't imagine them doing."

"I don't want there to be a battle," Iceroot said, his voice soft. "Cats die in battle, don't they?" Crowroot stayed silent, but his eyes lowered to the ground. "They do, I _know _they do. No one wants to talk about it with me but I know they do," the small cat sighed, his snow-white shoulders falling. "My mother told me about her brother, Rainslash. She said he was the bravest cat she'd ever known. But he died in battle," Crowroot looked down. Rainslash had been a brilliant warrior, strong, determined and kind, the first choice for Mosslight's new deputy when the old deputy, Robinfeather, retired. But the night before his naming ceremony, when Robinfeather was going to step aside to the senior den, Rainslash was killed at the claws of a rouge who had fought him over prey. It was only natural for Iceroot to be scared of the rouge cats, seeing as what had happened to his uncle. "Crowroot… what if _I _die in the battle?"

Crowroot leaned forward and licked the small cat in-between his ears. "You won't," Crowroot said. "If Mosslight didn't think you were strong enough to survive battles, she wouldn't have let you become a learner." Iceroot shrugged.

"I guess," then he shook himself. "Come on, the kits are probably wanting some fresh bedding already." Iceroot padded through the entrance of the den, and Crowroot heard the surprised mewls of Shadekit and Flamekit as Iceroot started removing their dirty bedding and tossing it outside the den entrance.

Crowroot sighed, and used his claws to gather the dirty bedding into a tight-packed ball and pick it up in his jaws to carry outside the entrance and drop it in a pile. After he had finished he started heading over to the healers den.

"Crowroot!" Crowroot stopped, one paw raised, and turned his head to see Mosslight walking towards him, Swallowflight right behind her. "I want you to come to the Meeting tonight," Crowroot couldn't stop his tail twitching with excitement. It was a great honour to be asked personally by the chief to a Meeting. "The other clans may not know about the rouge group yet, and if they don't then you are the only clan cat who has fought one of them." Crowroot nodded, and Mosslight left, leaving him alone with Swallowflight.

"How're you feeling?" Swallowflight asked. Crowroot shrugged.

"Stiff and sore, but a little better. Those herbs Leafroot used really worked." Swallowflight smiled.

"Good, I'm glad you're feeling better," she stood up. "You'd better rest. Even though you're feeling better you still need to be ready for the Meeting tonight." Crowroot dipped his head respectfully, and turned to go back to Leafroot's den.

He curled up in the soft grass, and closed his eyes. He didn't really sleep properly, just dozed, so he woke quickly when he heard Leafroot calling his name.

"Come on, Crowroot, it's time for the Meeting!"

**Next chapter will be in Fawnroot's POV :)**


End file.
